Tesco to launch own-brand smartphone

After its own-brand tablet, the Hudl, last year, Tesco is looking to make further inroads on the gadget marketplace with its own smartphone.

The phone, which hasn’t been given a name yet, should be released by the end of the year. It’ll run on Android software, and apparently be comparable to a Samsung Galaxy S5. Tesco chief executive Philip Clarke discussed the phone on BBC Radio 5 Live this morning, mentioning that it’ll come with various Tesco services and apps pre-installed. Unlike the cheap-and-cheerful Hudl, the new phone is designed to compete with fairly high-end rival products, but at an “aggressive” price.

In an interview with the BBC, the chief executive of the supermarket giant Philip Clarke said: “The opportunity in multi-channel online retail is what has lead us to develop the Hudl tablet. We’ve sold 550,000, Hudl 2 is coming out in September and then there’s going to be a Hudl phone by the end of the year, all are going to come loaded with Tesco services.”

A Tesco spokesman confirmed that the smartphone would run a forked version of Android. It will also sport an app that will allow users to scan and pay for items in-store using the phone.

The Hudl, meanwhile – which has sold half a million units so far – will be upgraded into the Hudl 2, due out in September.